STrib: A decade after he ripped Gophers and Lucia, GM Snow fired by Islanders

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STrib: A decade after he ripped Gophers and Lucia, GM Snow fired by Islanders

per RandBall:

If Don Lucia had known he was this close to outlasting a strange nemesis — Islanders general manager Garth Snow — would he really have decided a couple months ago to call it quits as Gophers men’s hockey head coach?

I kid, of course, since Lucia’s departure and the news Tuesday that Snow has been fired by the Islanders are mutually exclusive events.

But the proximity of timing of both events is cause to remember the strangeness that forever linked the Gophers and Islanders a decade ago.

In December 2007, Gophers standout Kyle Okposo — the No. 7 overall pick of the Islanders in the 2006 draft — decided midway through his sophomore year to leave Minnesota’s program and turn pro. It was a strange decision and strange timing.

But things got REALLY strange when Snow started offering unsolicited critiques of the Gophers and Lucia during a phone interview with the Star Tribune’s Brian Stensaas.

“Quite frankly, we weren’t happy with the program there,” Snow said. “They have a responsibility to coach, to make Kyle a better player, and they were not doing that. … [Okposo] just wasn’t getting
better — bottom line. And to me, that’s the frustrating part. We entrusted the coach there to turn him into a better hockey player, and it wasn’t happening. We feel more comfortable in him developing right under our watch.”

It got even more personal as the call continued.

“Whether it was Kyle or another player, until things change in that program we’d probably make the same decision. There should be
a coach there that looks in the mirror,” Snow said.

After December 2007 when that interview happened, Lucia went to two frozen fours, a national title game, and won six conference championships (plus one conference tournament). Garth Snow made the playoffs three times and won a grand total of one playoff series. Lucia had his warts, but Garth Snow was an awful GM.